Cougar vs. coyote on
Goodrich Creek
—Page 3
The
YMCA can help with
New Years Resolution
—Page 5
Huntington Food
Bank volunteers
retire —Page 8
Baker County Press
Friday, January 2, 2015 • Volume 2, Issue 1
Th eBakerCountyPress.com
•
Your local weekly news source!
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LOCAL NEWS: HEADLINE STORIES • LOCAL ARTICLES • OUTDOORS • AGRICULTURE • CLASSIFIEDS
Murder for
Swearing-in ceremony held hire plot
A NEW TEAM BEGINS AT THE COUNTY COURTHOUSE
BAKER CITY POLICE FOIL
LOCAL WOMAN’S PLAN TO
HAVE EX-BOYFRIEND
MURDERED
Submitted Photo.
Emily Munsell, 24, of Baker City, was arraigned
Monday.
Todd Arriola/ The Baker County Press
L-R: Mark Bennett, Cindy Carpenter, Alice Durlinger and Bill Harvey took their Oaths of Ofﬁ ce on Tuesday,
December 30th at the Baker County Courthouse.
By Todd Arriola
Todd@TheBakerCountyPress.com
On Tuesday, Decem-
ber 30 at 10 a.m., friends,
family, and co-workers
gathered in the Commis-
sioners Chambers of the
Baker County Courthouse
to attend the swearing-in
ceremony for Bill Harvey,
County Commission Chair;
Mark Bennett, County
Commissioner; Cindy Car-
penter, County Clerk; and
Alice Durﬂ inger, County
Treasurer, all elected to
their positions this Novem-
ber.
Tami Green ﬁ rst ad-
ministered the Oath of
Ofﬁ ce to Carpenter, who is
replacing Green as County
Clerk. Both held up their
right hands, and Carpenter
repeated (ﬁ lling in her
name):
“I, Cindy Carpenter, do
solemnly swear that I will
support the Constitution
of the United States of
America, and the Constitu-
tion of the State of Oregon,
and the law thereof, and
will faithfully and honor-
ably demean myself in the
ofﬁ ce of County Clerk, to
which I’ve been elected, to
the best of my ability, so
help me God.”
Durﬂ inger, Bennett and
Harvey were all sworn in
following Carpenter, re-
peating the same oath, the
only difference being their
name and the position to
which they were elected.
Each received their
own applause, and upon
completion of the oaths, an
enthusiastic, “Here, here,”
with further applause, was
heard from the crowd.
See SWEARING-IN/ Page 5
When the freeways close …
ODOT ADVISES AGAINST USING UNFAMILIAR ALTERNATIVE ROUTES
By Kerry McQuisten
News@TheBakerCountyPress.com
Emily Munsell, age 24 and a resident at 1356 Dewey
Avenue in Baker City, was arrested last Friday and
charged with one count of solicitation to commit murder.
According to an initial press release from the District
Attorney’s ofﬁ ce and other reports, the Baker City Police
Department received a tip from one of Munsell’s relatives
that Munsell was looking to hire a hitman to murder her
ex-boyfriend—who is also her son’s father.
The local police initiated an undercover sting operation,
which resulted in Munsell’s arrest after she tried to hire
the ofﬁ cer for the murder. Munsell was allegedly willing
to pay up to $1,000 for the murder.
Munsell was arraigned this Monday.
Though a Class A felony if convicted, the solitary
charge might only carry a three to ﬁ ve year prison
sentence—but as a guidelines sentence the range could
potentially be broader and carry a tougher sentence
dependent in part on factors such as the accused criminal
background, according to District Attorney Matt Shirt-
cliff.
This particular crime would not fall under Oregon’s
Ballot Measure 11. Measure 11 was a citizens’ initiative
passed in 1994 and sponsored by then-State Representa-
tive Kevin Mannix, which established minimum sentenc-
es for certain criminal offenses.
By Brian Addison
See MUNSELL / Page 10
Brian@TheBakerCountyPress.com
The mountain passes
between Baker City and
Pendleton, and the curves
and shady spots between
Baker City and Ontario
offer some of the most
treacherous winter driving
conditions in the U.S. Ev-
ery year drivers traveling
through this region become
victims of slick roads with
Interstate-84 setting the
scene of several devastat-
ing motor vehicle acci-
dents in the past several
years.
Sometimes these ac-
cidents prove fatal.
Oregon Department of
Transportation (ODOT)
recognizes the safety
hazards posed by harsh
winter conditions in this
region combined with
heavy semi-truck and pas-
Huntington
awarded
$3 million grant
By Eileen Driver
Eileen@TheBakerCountyPress.com
Kerry McQuisten / The Baker County Press
Dooley Mountain is closed to big rigs including tour busses as an alternate
route during freeway closures.
senger vehicle trafﬁ c and
have road crews working
24-hours per day, seven
day per week to make the
Friday
Mostly cloudy. Partly sunny and cold, highs in
the mid 20s. Nighttime low around 15.
Saturday
Mostly cloudy. A slight chance of an early morn-
ing snow shower. Chance of precip is 20%,
highs in the upper 20s. Low around 14.
Sunday
Mostly cloudy. A chance of snow, light accumu-
lations are possible. Chance of precip is 30%.
High of around 30 degrees. Low of 25.
thoroughfares passable.
Even with this intensive
effort, many times between
November and March
ODOT makes the decision
to close the interstate.
See ODOT / Page 8
Your weekend weather forecast for Baker County.
Our forecast made possible by
this generous sponsor:
Ofﬁ cial weather provider for
The Baker County Press.
The City of Huntington has been awarded and has ac-
cepted a $3 million grant from the Infrastructure Finance
Authority, or IFA, to totally replace the City’s existing
sewer system.
According to Tracy Mclean, the Huntington City
Recorder, “This is the largest grant we have ever received
and the largest project we have ever undertaken.”
The current system, which was built in the 1960s and
revamped in the 1980s, has been the subject of much de-
bate for the last several years between City Ofﬁ cials and
the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ).
See $3 MILLION GRANT / Page 5
ALSO IN THIS ISSUE
Goodrich Creek cougar vs. coyote
Community Bank charity fundraiser
Op-Eds: Sen. Lee, Rep. Walden
Community Connection lunch
Classiﬁ eds and Service Directory
Bentz’s new legislative team
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